Fixed gears are easier to slow down in wet weather? Are you fucking kidding? They depend 100% on surface contact with a wet road for reducing speed. Brakes slow you down by gripping the rim of the wheel from both sides, which is not affected nearly as much by wet conditions.

Your rim is very much affected by wet conditions. You have that 1-second “whoa” period where your brakes do nothing because they are scraping off the micro-layer of water on the rim, and then they start to brake.

Drum brakes are the only bike brakes that are unaffected by wet conditions. Problem is they generally suck, but they suck equally rain or shine.

If you had actually logged any miles on the various scenarios you’re talking about (fixie rain or shine, caliper brakes rain or shine), you would not make this assertion.

I’m not denying that you’ve got a better idea re: the state of your traction on a fixed gear and there’s certainly room for a very unpleasant surprise delay when applying brakes when it’s wet out.

Still, if you’re riding brakeless, your options for stopping in a hurry are pretty limited. Skip stops and skidding aren’t going to accomplish nearly as much in wet conditions, leaving you with… applying back pressure, and that’s about it.

Sorry but you are so wrong on this, you need to go back to school to retake physics.

Both fixies and bikes with brakes rely entirely on friction between the tire and the road to slow down. Bikes with brakes are affected by lower friction between the rim and brake pad during wet conditions, this is not an issue for fixies. Adding brakes to the mix adds an extra place for loss of friction.

Fixies are great if you want to look cool and only want to stick to the flat parts of town. Real cyclists choose gears, a freewheel and brakes because of the greater flexibility they bring.

As a former cyclist and current pedestrian enjoying my 8th year in SF, I can’t begin to count the number of times someone in a BMW has cut me off or nearly hit me by driving idiotically. BMW drivers are the kings (or queens) of ‘look left, turn right’.

Hmm, I wonder though…fixie riders seem to be the ones most likely to not stop at intersections, blow through stop signs, etc. I’ve always assumed that it was because stopping/starting on a fixie requires more energy, or at least leg strength. Or is it just because fixie riders tend to be morons?